Grafting Supplies

A good grafting knife is an essential tool for anyone interested in grafting. They are quite sharp so they can cleanly slice through scionwood and rootstock, and have a single bevel which is preferred for grafting. 

We offer the following options:

Victorinox Grafting Knife (Right- or Left-Handed) - Made of stainless steel, this grafting knife is a good quality, economical, lightweight knife for beginners and casual users. Available in red (left-handed) or green (right0handed). 

Victorinox Grafting and Budding Knife with Brass Bark Lifter (Right-Handed) - This stainless steel knife is designed for grafting and budding. It features a uniquely shaped stainless steel blade with a bark lifter along with a separate brass bark lifter. 

NO LONGER AVAILABLE - Victorinox Grafting and Budding Knife (Right-Handed) - This stainless steel knife is designed for grafting and budding. It features a flat-tipped stainless steel blade with a bark lifter. 

Buddy tape is a flexible, rubbery tape holds bench grafts together and keeps in moisture! We have two options available:

1. Packs of 50 pieces - each piece is 25mm x 70mm (some packs may have 30mm x 70 mm pieces)
2. Individual rolls (perforated) - each roll is 60m long and has ~850 pieces of 25mm x 70mm sections of tape

To use this tape, simply wrap it around the graft union slowly moving it up and down around the union to ensure none of the cambium is exposed to the air. You can then rip a tiny bit off the end and use it to seal the tip of your scionwood as well so it doesn't dry out. A single piece of tape is often suitable for one graft, although those newer to grafting may use a couple of pieces per graft as needed.

The tape will naturally biodegrade over time and fall off from the tree. However, be careful not to wrap the tree too tightly such that the tape becomes a thin strand rather than stays flat. This may begin to girdle your tree, a lesson we unfortunately learned the hard way.

Lac Balsam is a premium European wound sealing product made from natural tree resin.  This is simply the best solution for sealing those irregular wounds caused by such things as rabbits, mice, ice storms and string trimmers.  It also works reasonably well as a grafting wax.  We have been using Lac Balsam around the nursery for as long as we can remember... and we're super super happy with this stuff. 

A little bit goes a long way too; one of these 200mL tubes will last a long time for the backyard orchardist. However, for those looking for a larger quantity we also have 1kg tubs as well!

We will  be offering two different dates for you to join us (in person) for our 2026 Grafting Workshop in order to accommodate a growing interest.

We are offering you a choice of either Saturday, April 25th, 2026 (1pm-4pm) & Sunday, April 26th, 2026 (1pm-4pm) for our annual workshop.

This workshop covers dormant whip and tongue grafting! We will walk you through the history and theory behind grafting, we give you a chance to try grafting out for yourself, and by the end of the workshop you'll have grafted five of your own apple trees to plant at home!

We offer both single and paired registration:

Single registration includes:

• 5 scions and rootstock of your choice* - you will graft and take home five trees!
  
• 1 copy of Fruit Tree Grafting for Everyone (co-authored by Steph!)
• Practice material for one person
• Cost - $150 per person plus tax

*Your options will be any of the scionwood varieties we have available for this season and specified rootstock varieties. We will reach out to participants at a later date regarding their selection. Additional rootstock and scionwood can be purchased from the website when available. 

**Paired tickets are an economical option for two people to attend the workshop but each pair only takes home five trees total. If both participants want to graft and take home five trees each, they will each need to purchase a Single ticket.

Curious about grafting your own trees in the summer? We're happy to offer a grafting workshop focused on chip budding apple trees. While this workshop focuses on apple trees, these same skills can be used to graft other species of fruit trees as well!

Registration includes:

• 1 piece of apple budwood of your choice* and 1 EMLA 106 semi-dwarf rootstock - you will graft and take home one apple tree!
  
• 1 copy of Fruit Tree Grafting for Everyone (co-authored by Steph)
• Exclusive workshop-day discounts on fruit trees, tools, and orchard supplies

*We will be in touch closer to the workshop to let you know what apple varieties will be available for grafting.

Dates & Times:

• Part One: Zoom - Wednesday, August 12th from 7pm-9pm, online via Zoom
• Part Two: In-person – Thursday, August 13th from 6pm-8pm OR Friday, August 14th from 1pm-3pm in our orchard (weather permitting) or in our hoophouse at Silver Creek Nursery (2343 Gerber Rd, Wellesley, ON, N0B 2T0)
  • When signing up, please select the date you will be attending in-person
  • If weather permits we will be out in the orchard so please dress appropriately for the weather. If there is rain we will be in the hoophouse. The hoophouse is covered but please dress appropriately for the temperature. 

During the Zoom call, we will walk you through the theory and application of summer grafting including aftercare, and will answer any grafting questions you may have. On Thursday and Friday (note that participants pick which day to attend in-person) we will go over chip budding techniques in-person, give you a chance to try grafting out for yourself, and by the end of the workshop you'll have grafted your own apple tree to plant at home!

NOTE: Refreshments will be provided (bring your own drinking vessel). We will have some stools/chairs but bring your own if you prefer.